MP Barry Sheerman has called for the leaders of Kirklees Council to hold firm over plans to demolish fire-ravaged Newsome Mills.
Last month mill owner Panorama Living Ltd applied for listed building consent to demolish the ground floor of the mill and its weaving sheds – leaving the mill’s iconic tower intact.
Earlier this month Newsome Mills Campaign co-ordinator Diane Sims urged people to oppose the demolition of the structures.
She said Panorama Living’s plans to build houses following the demolition following last November’s fire would leave the clock tower standing alone and “out of context” and “very strange.”
And today the Labour Huddersfield MP said he wanted a meeting with Kirklees Council chief executive Jacqui Gedman and council leader Clr David Sheard to encourage them to stand up to the developers.
He said they generally preferred to bulldoze existing structures and start with a “nice flat site. Whereas it looks to me that you could keep some of these iconic structures”.
Barry added: “We all know that there’s a great passion to retain some of the historic listed parts of the site.
“Doing it this way we could make it the centrepiece for the regeneration of Newsome.”
He said police were still investigating how the fire started.
